2017 U SPORTS Women's Hockey Championship

Awards and All-Canadians

BRODRICK
TROPHY (player of the year): Ann-Sophie Bettez,
McGill

Bettez, an alternate captain with the Martlets, finished second
in the RSEQ in both points (37) and assists (24) this season, while
tying for the league lead with four-game winning goals in 20
contests. The 5-foot-4 forward helped defending national champion
McGill take first place in the Quebec standings for the seventh
straight year thanks to a stellar 18-1-1 mark.

The 24-year-old marketing major has had a storied career since
earning CIS rookie of the year honours in 2007-08. The two-time
RSEQ MVP has been named a first-team all-star in Quebec in each of
her five campaigns and is also a five-time all-Canadian, including
a trio of first-team nods. She will graduate this spring as
McGill’s all-time leader in goals (85), assists (87) and
points (172) in 91 regular season games.

On the eve of her fifth appearance at the CIS championship,
Bettez has already guided the Martlets to four trips to the
national final, including gold medal victories in 2008, 2009 and
2011. A former national under-22 team member, she also helped
Canada capture gold at the 2011 Winter Universiade in Turkey.

“Her growth and development as a player, student and
person has been incredible,” said McGill head coach Peter
Smith. “She is a coach’s dream -- keeps it simple,
plays an uncomplicated style of game and brings a great combination
of skill and grit. She is the hardest workers on a team full of
hard workers and I hold her work ethic up as the standard for the
young players on our team to strive for.”

The other finalists for the Brodrick Trophy were forwards Alex
Normore of St. Francis Xavier, Morgan McHaffie of Queen’s and
Julie Paetsch of Saskatchewan.

ROOKIE OF THE
YEAR: Mélodie Daoust, McGill

Daoust is the fourth McGill player in six years to capture CIS
rookie-of-the-year honours. She follows Marie-Andrée
Leclerc-Auger (2009), current teammate Ann-Sophie Bettez (2008) and
Catherine Ward (2007).

The 5-foot-6 centre merited first-team RSEQ all-star and
second-team all-Canadian status in her university debut after
winning the conference scoring title with an impressive 18-25-43
record in only 18 contests, including three game-winning goals. Her
average of 2.39 points per game was the best in the country, while
her point total was the third-best in the history of the Quebec
league.

The 20-year-old physical education freshman, who also plays for
the Canadian under-22 squad, ended up fifth in the nation in goals,
third in points and second in assists, despite playing
significantly fewer games in the RSEQ.

“Mélodie is smooth and deceptively fast,”said
bench boss Peter Smith. “Her skating has improved so much
over the year and her ability to play a much-improved skating style
has been a big factor in her game. She had a couple of flaws in her
mechanics but has worked hard on her agility and it’s made a
big difference. It has really paid off in terms of increased
productivity over the course of the season.”

COACH OF THE
YEAR (presented by Coaches of Canada): Peter Smith,
McGill

Smith previously won the coach-of-the-year trophy in 2007-08 and
also shared it with Lisa MacDonald of Saint Mary’s in
2002-02. Current Alberta bench boss Howie Draper is the only other
coach to have claimed the CIS award on three occasions.

A seven-time recipient at the conference level over his 12
seasons, the native of Lachine, Que., guided McGill to an 18-1-1
record and first place in the RSEQ standings for an unprecedented
seventh straight year. His troops registered the second-best
offence in the country (4.80 goals per game), the top defensive
record (1.00 GAA), best power-play (25.0%), third-highest
penalty-kill (91.0) and were the least penalized team in the
nation, averaging 7.6 minutes per game.

Smith, who also served seven years with the national
women’s program and was an assistant coach on the squad that
won Olympic gold in 2010, has led the Martlets to a berth at the
CIS national championship tournament for the 11th time in 12
campaigns and enters this year’s tournament with three CIS
gold medals, a pair of silvers and four bronzes. He is the
winningest women’s hockey coach in McGill history, entering
the Nationals with a career record of 327-118-30 in 475 games
overall (.720).

“Peter is a consummate professional and a great role model
as a coach who cares extremely about the success of his athletes,
both on the ice and in the classroom,” said Drew Love,
executive director of athletics at McGill.

Morillo became the first UOIT student athlete in any sport to
receive a CIS major award since the Ridgebacks joined CIS in
2006-07.

The third-year forward finished third in OUA scoring with 32
points in 26 conference games, collecting six multi-point outings
and establishing several new team records along the way. Her
performances earned her first-team OUA all-star status and a spot
on the second all-Canadian unit.

In the classroom, the nuclear engineering student has earned the
UOIT All-Academic award for the past two years and was named a CIS
Academic All-Canadian in 2010-11. She is also a member of the
Canadian Nuclear Society and was the recipient of the 2011
James-Baun Cup, presented to a student who shows commitment,
dedication, perseverance, academic responsibility, leadership and
is a great teammate in the pursuit of excellence. The Cup is named
after Bobby Baun and his long-time friend Don James.

The Ridgebacks’ captain also stays active in the
community, appearing at fundraisers and elementary school visits.
She also takes on a leadership role while the Ridgebacks run
numerous clinics and practices for local girls hockey
organizations, helping promote CIS hockey and grow the sport at the
grassroots level.

“I am very proud of Jill’s accomplishments this
season,” said UOIT head coach Karen Nystrom. “She
showed much poise, determination and confidence throughout the
season. In her role as captain and with her performance, she led
our program to new heights. Jill is a true varsity athlete,
achieving academic and athletic success through commitment, focus
and discipline, as well as finding the time to play a valuable role
within the community. Not only is this important for the
Ridgebacks, but it is for Jill too, which was seen in her active
involvement within the community.”

St. Thomas’ Kyla Blackmore, Carleton’s Kristen
MacDonald and Saskatchewan’s Kelsey Tulloch were also
nominated for the Marion Hilliard Award.

ALL-CANADIAN
TEAMS

The all-Canadian teams were also announced on Wednesday and
McGill once again led the way with four selections.

Joining Bettez on the first squad were teammates Charline
Labonté in net and Cathy Chartrand on the blue line, StFX
teammates Suzanne Fenerty on defence and Alex Normore at forward,
as well as Saskatchewan Julie Paetsch, also a forward.

Labonté, a two-time Olympic gold medallist from
Boisbriand, Que., became the first player in CIS women’s
hockey history to be named a first-team all-Canadian each of her
five university seasons. In her final campaign, the national team
goalie led the country with a .944 save percentage, recorded a
CIS-best eight shutouts in 18 league games and finished second in
the nation with a stingy 1.06 goals against average. She ends her
CIS career with an 82-3 mark in conference play, including a record
45 shutouts.

Chartrand became a four-time CIS all-star, including three
straight first-team nods. Fenerty is also a returnee from last
year’s first unit, while Normore was a second-team
all-Canadian and the CIS rookie of the year last season.

In addition to Daoust and Morillo, the second CIS dream team for
2011-12 is comprised of Waterloo freshman Rebecca Bouwhuis between
the pipes, rearguards Stephanie Ramsay of Calgary and Jacalyn
Sollis of Guelph, as well as Canadian icon Hayley Wickenheiser at
forward.

Wickenheiser, a three-time Olympic gold medallist and six-time
world champion, was named CIS MVP a year ago in her varsity debut.
She averaged two points per contest in her second season with the
Dinos, including a CIS-best seven game-winning goals in only 16
conference games.

Joining Daoust on the season’s all-rookie squad were
Bouwhuis, defenders Valérie Watson of Ottawa and Kristen
Barbara of York, as well as forwards Marie-Pier Arsenault of
Moncton and Sadie Lenstra of Lethbridge.